Increase chance of blood clots in MC patients?

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Trace
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Increase chance of blood clots in MC patients?

Post by Trace »

My new Dr. recently prescribed a daily baby aspirin for me due to my increased risk of developing blood clots because of my digestive disorders. I don't know if he was referring to the MC or the Celiac increasing the risk. Unfortunately, the baby aspirin is causing some upper GI bleeding, and I want to stop taking it. My books suggest willow bark, and I can get that at our health food store. But, really, I"m not one to take any medications, but if I can prevent something from happening, I will. I need to call him, but I like to have some facts at my fingers. I'm just not finding any documentation to back his assertion.

Anyone?

Thanks!
Trace
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coryhub
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Post by coryhub »

Hi Trace,
I too am experiencing upper GI bleeding and was just diagnosed as having
Ischemic colitis. My doctor asked me all about family history of blood clots.
I was told that most cases of ischemic colitis are mild and resolve on their own in a couple of days.
I seem okay today, just fatigued.
Cory
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Diagnosed with Lymphocytic Colitis Sept. 2010
On and off Entocort(Currently Off)
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Zizzle
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Post by Zizzle »

I can't imagine adding baby aspirin to an IBD treatment regimen -- to rough on the GI tract! What about taking fish oil instead? It thins the blood.

Incidentally, my husband thought about taking baby aspirin for heart health and then read you can't go off it once you start, because of an increased risk of heart-related events, I think. I would look it up. But that scared him enough to avoid it.
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tex
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Post by tex »

Traci,

This is almost certainly the source of your doctor's information:

http://www.medscape.org/viewarticle/751967
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is linked with greater risk for thromboembolic events, as first noted by Bargen and Barker in the July 1936 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine. In the July 2010 issue of the World Journal of Surgery, Scarpa and colleagues found that patients with IBD had an increased risk for postoperative deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

This retrospective cohort study assesses whether patients with IBD have a higher risk for postoperative DVT, pulmonary embolism (PE), myocardial infarction, or stroke within 30 days of surgery.
So the clinical implications of the study are:

Patients with IBD vs those without IBD have a higher risk for postoperative DVT or PE (odds ratio, 2.03), especially after nonintestinal surgery (odds ratio, 4.45).

Patients with IBD vs those without IBD do not have higher risk for postoperative myocardial infarction or stroke.


But note that this report was for 30-day postoperative conditions, only. Therefore, it may or may not have any relevance at any other times. IMO, the fact that the study showed no higher risk for postoperative heart attack or stroke means much more than the comments about clot risk. If stroke risk or heart attack risk is not increased, (at all), then how could the increased clot risk be a major concern? Blood clots are merely an inconvenience, unless they cause a heart attack or stroke.

Taking aspirin daily, is risky for anyone - it's especially risky for anyone with an IBD, (or any autoimmune disease, for that matter). It's like taking a little bit of poison each day. True, we might be able to get away with it, but the problem is that we don't know what kind of damage it may be causing, until the damage is severe enough to cause clinical symptoms, and by then, some of the damage may be permanent.

If you really want to reduce the clot risk, you can do so by taking Plavix, for example. It's much more expensive, but it's not an NSAID. I take it to reduce stroke risk.

Tex
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It is suspected that some of the hardest material known to science can be found in the skulls of GI specialists who insist that diet has nothing to do with the treatment of microscopic colitis.
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Trace
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Post by Trace »

To be honest, Tex, I've never even given the possibility of a clot any thought. Seems like everything about me is so liquid...how could a clot form??? You are correct; that was the source he mentioned. And, he said, given my mother's large cell artery issue, he thought it prudent. But, he said if I'm bleeding we can try to do the same thing with white willow bark or the fish oil. I'll head to the health food store tomorrow.

I'm going to meet with him next week because now I've been told I have idiopathic sensorineural hearing loss...I'm deaf for no reason. So that further makes me not want to take aspirin.

Cory I just feel your pain. I have a hard time walking from the house to the barn without taking a rest...that's when I know it's going to be a bad, bad day.
I hope you feel better.

Zizzle, don't tell me that!!! I only took about 6 doses before I realized this wasn't working..so far, no side-effects.

Thanks for the input....
Trace
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